Increasing recognition of the relationships and dynamics between state fragility, conflict and violence now positions these issues amongst the central foci of conflict and development practitioners worldwide. It is in this light that ACCORD's Founder and Executive Director participated in the World Bank Group's Fragility, Conflict and Violence Forum in Washington DC, USA on 11-13 February 2015. Convened by Ms Betty Bigombe, the World Bank Group's Senior Director of its Fragility, Conflict and Violence Cross-Cutting Solutions Area, the Forum strived to unite political leaders, policymakers, academics, activists, and civil society organisations towards strengthening their responses and supporting countries mired by fragility, conflict, and violence.

Mr Vasu Gounden, ACCORD's Founder and Executive Director served as the Moderator to the Forum's opening plenary session on 11 February entitled 'The Politics of Peacebuilding: Lessons from Promoting Shared Societies'. In this session Mr Gounden engaged Ms Bigombe, Former Finnish President H.E. Tarja Halonen, former Libyan Prime Minister H.E. Abdurrahim El-Keib, UN Assistant Secretary General for Peacebuilding Support Oscar Fernandez-Taranco, and World Bank Vice President for Africa, Mr Makhtar Diop.

During this session, which was conducted as a joint event with the Club de Madrid, the panellists critically reflected on emerging trends, best practices, and lessons learned from societies that have successfully transitioned from fragility to prosperity. During his contributions Mr Gounden unpacked the concept of fragility as comprising the triple threats of poverty, unemployment, and inequality, and thereby linking these dimensions to the emergence of violence and cycles of conflict. His conclusions highlighted how societies that emphasise and successfully develop skills, opportunities and capital for their people are most likely to overcome fragility and promote more sustainable and equitable development.

ACCORD hosted the Minister of Communication and Reconciliation from the Central African Republic (CAR), H.E. Madam Antoinette Montaigne Moussa, from 30th May-2nd June, in Durban, South Africa. The visit was intended to explore possible collaborative activities and partnership between the Ministry and ACCORD in the areas of reconciliation and nation-building in CAR.

The visit started with meetings at the ACCORD Offices in Durban, over two days where discussions were held on the current plans and programmes of action by the Ministry, as well as exchanging with representatives from different faiths who shared their experiences on working on issues of reconciliation.

The Minister also held a briefing with members of the diplomatic community in Pretoria, where she provided an update on the situation in CAR as well as outlining the Ministries' emergency plan of action on reconciliation. The CAR government has developed this emergency plan of action in an attempt to address the imminent needs for dialogue and confidence building among all actors in order to mitigate the violence and quick start long-term reconciliatory initiatives. The discussions provided the audience with an opportunity to better understand the priorities of the CAR government on its road towards stability and development. The international community present at the event was also able to engage with the Minister on issues relating to key areas for reconciliation and offer their perspectives on the situation and on potential path of collaboration.

As a civil society organisation within the field of conflict management, ACCORD hosted the Minister with the belief that both state and non-state actors within the continent must make commitments towards the resolution of the conflict in CAR and the reestablishment of peace and security.

The discussions during the Minister's visit resulted in the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding that establishes areas of collaboration between ACCORD and the Ministry in advancing the reconciliation agenda in CAR.

ACCORD Founder and Executive Director, Vasu Gounden, has addressed the 10th anniversary of the AU Peace and Security Council, in the Nelson Mandela Hall at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa.

]]>ian@thinkteam.co.za (Ian Henderson)ExecutiveFri, 30 May 2014 08:52:22 +0200ACCORD Executive Director calls for 21st century to be the 'century of peace' at United Nations special eventhttp://www.accord.org.za/news/248-executive/1145-accord-executive-director-calls-for-21st-century-to-be-the-century-of-peace-at-united-nations-special-event
http://www.accord.org.za/news/248-executive/1145-accord-executive-director-calls-for-21st-century-to-be-the-century-of-peace-at-united-nations-special-event

Speaking at a side event held during the Special Event of the President of the United Nations General Assembly on the Follow-Up Efforts Made Towards Achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) on 26 September 2013 in New York, Mr Vasu Gounden, Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, called to make the post-2015 development agenda one that transforms the 21st century into a 'century of peace.'

Presenting alongside representatives from the Governments of Finland, Guatemala, the Philippines, Rwanda, and Timor-Leste, as well as the Chair of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee and the Administrator of the Untied Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Mr Gounden reflected upon the complexities of conflict and development challenges in the 21st century, as well as the complimentary roles of government, civil society, and the private sector in achieving peace through the post-2015 development agenda.

"No government alone can manage the complexity of the 21st century without a partnership with civil society and the private sector. This is the departure point for civil society and this must be the departure point for the post-2015 development agenda. Civil society must also accept that it is not an equal partner with government, and that government must take the lead in securing peace and achieving development. However, civil society cannot resign to serve only as an appendage to these processes - they must be full partners working towards a common vision."

Mr Gounden commended the report of the UN Secretary General's High Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the post-2015 development agenda, noting its specific illustrative goal on 'Ensuring Stable and Peaceful Societies.' However, he stated that the real debates inherent to the post-2015 development agenda and processes would not be over the substance of what is recommended, but instead on the issues of the principles and approaches that will underpin their implementation.

"On the question of principle there will be two important criteria that will be debated with regard to the MDGs: First, how universally applicable will the new MDGs be. Are they goals that apply to all of us that collectively make up the United Nations, or will some be excluded? Second, how consistently will they be implemented?" Mr Gounden further speculated that considerable debate would emerge over whether the goals, targets, and indicators of the new development agenda would be contextualised for specific countries, or whether strict benchmarks would be applied across-the-board.

Mr Gounden concluded his remarks by reflecting on his personal experiences and urged world leaders to make the 21st century a 'century of peace.'

"There are three ways to resolve a dispute; we can go to war, to court, or we can dialogue. Every Government in the world has a Ministry of Defence to pursue war, as well as a Ministry of Justice to settle disputes in a court of law; except for Costa Rica, Nepal, and the Solomon Islands, no other country has a Ministry of Peace to promote the peaceful settlement of disputes. Over the last thirty-five years, I have gone to war as a combatant in South Africa's liberation war, I have practised as a lawyer and gone to court to settle political disputes, and since 1991, I have mediated in conflict in several parts of the world. I know that mediation leads to sustainable peace. Let us make the post-2015 MDGs an agenda that will make the 21st century the Century of Peace!"

On 05-07 December 2012 the Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited by the Centre for Global Pluralism to be their keynote speaker at their second Pluralism Forum held on 06 December 2012. The Forum is a new series of moderated dialogues with leading international authorities on the various policies and practices that broadly support pluralism.

The Global Centre for Pluralism is a new international organization founded by His Highness the Aga Khan in partnership with the Government of Canada. Located in Ottawa, the mission of the Centre is to support peaceful and sustainable approaches to living well with diversity. John McNee, Canada's former Ambassador to the UN, joined the Centre as its inaugural Secretary General in September 2011.

The first Pluralism Forum was held in April 2012. It presented a reassessment of Europe's multiculturalism debates (arguing that Europe's much-publicized retreat from multiculturalism at the political level has not been mirrored at the policy level, with the notable exception of the Netherlands). It featured three leading academics – Will Kymlicka and Keith Banting from Queen's University (Canada) and Tariq Modood of Bristol University (UK). Each panellist made a 15 minute presentation and then the panel engaged the audience in a question and answer session moderated by Susan Harada, a former CBC journalist teaching at Carleton University.

The topic that the Executive Director spoke on was "Preventing pluralism breakdown: Lessons from African peace processes." Intra-state conflict is the ultimate expression of State failure. Divisions, often blamed on ethnic or religious differences, spiral into violent upheaval. However, most societies are diverse in some way. Therefore in his presentation some of the questions that the Executive Director looked to answer were: i) why some are able to live peaceably with diversity while others fail; ii) what can conflict mediation processes in Africa and elsewhere teach us about the conditions of pluralism breakdown; and iii) how can divided societies pull back from the brink.

The two respondents to Mr. Gounden's presentation were Rita Abrahamsen and David Petrasek from the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa. About one hundred local participants joined the Forum, drawn from academia, the diplomatic community, Government departments and civil society.

While in Ottawa Mr. Gounden also had a meeting with representatives from Cida as well as Romeo Dallaire from the Romeo Dallaire Child Soldiers Initiative.

The Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited to be a resource person at an 'Increase Peace through Mediation' Ministerial Breakfast Meeting in New York, by the Government of Finland, who currently funds ACCORD's Mediation Capacity Building Programme for the African Union. The Ministerial Breakfast Meeting was hosted by the Permanent Mission of Turkey to the United Nations on 20 September 2011. This is the second meeting to be held, following a first meeting that was held in 2010.

The meeting aimed to reflect on recent mediation experiences and provide insight to the UN Secretary-General as he develops guidance for more effective mediation. It also served to consider further steps to improve co-ordination and complementarity among various actors involved in mediation, as well as to strengthen the UN's mediation capacity.

Gounden was asked to give a short presentation from the perspective of a 'Track Two' mediation actor on what should be taken into account when developing guidance for more effective mediation.

In July 2011 ACCORD's Executive Director was a resource person at a retreat hosted by the Permanent Mission of Turkey to the UN, focusing on strengthening preventive diplomacy and mediation.

On the 4th and 5th of September 2011, ACCORD co-hosted a 'High Level Retreat of Envoys for Peace in Africa' in partnership with the African Union (AU) and Humanitarian Dialogue (HD), in Cairo. ACCORD's Executive Director was one of the resource persons at the retreat.

The AU convened the first High Level Retreat on the topic "Promotion of Peace, Security and Stability in Africa" in 2010. The theme for the 2011 Retreat was "Good Governance for Peace, Security and Stability". It focused on i) the challenges involved in establishing good governance; ii) the review of the mechanisms and frameworks for addressing governance challenges; iii) the threat of poor governance to peace, security and stability and iv) international and regional responses to governance related conflicts.

The Retreat brought together about one hundred representatives that included AU Special Envoys/Representatives and mediators; REC's; the League of Arab States; the European Union; the United Nations; representatives from the Security Council's Permanent Members; research institutes and think tanks and other stakeholders.

On 17 – 19 May 2011 the Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited to be a resource person at an "Integration as a factor for Africa's Renaissance" International Symposium in Lome, Togo, hosted by PAX Africana. Pax Africana was established by H.E. Mr. Edem Kodjo, the former Secretary-General of the then Organisation of African Unity (OAU), now the AU, and the former Prime Minister of the Republic of Togo. The aim of Pax Africana is to contribute towards the emergence of a better world, including Africa, with the objectives of guaranteeing peace in Africa by a proactive assessment of conflicts and their prevention through negotiation, mediation and the fostering of an environment to enhance development.

The Symposium brought together a high level delegation consisting of former Presidents, senior Government officials, academics and civil society representatives. The Executive Director was a panelist in the session focusing on the topic "Integration as a means to achieve Africa's Renaissance".

ACCORD teamed-up with WhizzKids United for an International Peace Day Celebration on 21st September. In support of the UN 2010 theme of 'Peace, Youth and Development', ACCORD staff joined 150 Grade 5 learners who competed in a “World Cup” Tournament to graduate from a year-long 'On the Ball' WhizzKids United programme at Clarence Primary School in Greyville, South Africa.

Addressing the gathering, ACCORD founder and Executive Director, Vasu Gounden, highlighted the significance of World Peace Day and the important work of the United Nations and African Union to bring an end to war and violent conflict in Africa and the world. The Peace Day ceremony included lighting a Flame of Peace and observing a minute of silence for Peace in Africa.

Roger Palmgren, Sports Director for AmaZulu FC, congratulated the players, both boys and girls, for the 'Fair Play' they had shown during the tournament. He shared his experiences of football as a positive force for peace in Africa, as it unites people and gives them hope and joy. Roger has first-hand experience of football in African countries ravaged by war and conflict through his work with the national teams of Sierra Leone, DRC and Rwanda.

WhizzKids United operates in both rural and urban areas in three African countries: South Africa, Ghana and Uganda. In South Africa they are active in three provinces: KwaZulu-Natal, the North West, and the Western Cape. A total of over 12,000 youth have come through the 'On the Ball' programme in South Africa since 2006. The curriculum teaches life skills through the medium of soccer and includes looking at gender equality, elements of conflict management and an understanding of HIV/AIDS.

In related events on World Peace Day, ACCORD hosted an African Standby Force (ASF) Civilian Dimension Technical Workshop in Pretoria, South Africa. The Workshop was conducted in collaboration with the AU Peace Support Operations Division (PSOD) for the Principal Heads and Civilian Focal Points of the ASF Planning Elements at the AU and Regional Economic Community (REC)/Regional Economic Mechanism levels.

ACCORD also presented the initial findings from the field research undertaken by in Southern Sudan during July/August 2010 at a UNMIS Civil Affairs internal workshop in Juba, Sudan.

On Monday, 01 March 2010, the Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, met with Philippe Orliange, the Deputy Head of Mission from the French Embassy in Pretoria. This is the first official visit to ACCORD House by a representative from the French Embassy. Mr. Orliange’s visit was to learn more about ACCORD and its activities.

On 13 February 2010 the Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited by the South African Minister of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, The Honourable Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, to attend the opening of Parliament dinner hosted in honour of the Diplomatic Corps. On the 17th of February Mr. Gounden was invited by the new South African Minister of Finance, The Honourable Mr. Pravin Gordhan, to attend the presentation of his first National Budget Speech in Parliament.

On 30 January 2010 the Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, participated in the immersing of the last known remaining portion of Mahatma Gandhi’s ashes into the sea. Mahatma Gandhi died in 1948. The ashes were immersed just outside of the entrance to the Durban harbour.

Mr. Gounden, who is also a Board member of the Gandhi Development Trust, was the Master of Ceremony at a short ceremony held at the naval base on Salisbury Island after the immersing of the ashes. In the afternoon Mr. Gounden was again Master of Ceremonies at a memorial service that was held at the Durban City Hall attended by, among others, the Deputy Mayor of Durban, Mr. Logie Naidoo; Ela Gandhi, the Granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi and other members of the Gandhi family; the acting Indian High Commissioner to South Africa, H.E. Mr. Kumaran and the new Indian Consul General in Durban, Mr. Sharan.

ACCORD's Executive Director was appointed to the ICCO board in late 2008 after attending their regional meeting that was held in Madagascar and which aimed to investigate how to implement their new innovation process in the Southern Africa region. He was therefore invited to participate in the first IAC meeting for 2010 which was held in Woudschoten, Zeist on 25 and 26 February 2010.

The Executive Director also used the opportunity to meet with a number of Dutch Foreign Ministry Officials to further explore areas of funding towards ACCORD’s Great Lakes programme.

In 2007 Mr. Gounden was invited by the Dutch United Nations Student Association Utrecht (DUNSA-Utrecht) to be the Keynote speaker at their conference on international conflicts entitled “A Struggle for Peace”. He was also invited by the National Committee for International Cooperation and Sustainable Development (NCDO) to be a resource person at the Dutch Africa Day, presenting the keynote address in the workshop on “African Solutions to African Conflicts”. In 2008 Mr. Gounden was one of two speakers from the South invited to be a resource person at the “Ontwikkeling is Verandering” (Development is Change): Dialogue about the Future Conference hosted by the Royal Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). This meeting was part of the interactive dialogue process started by the MFA with Dutch civil society organisations about the future of the Dutch co-financing system.

On 05 February 2010 the Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited by H.E. Ambassador Myllyntausta, the Finnish Ambassador to South Africa, to meet with H.E. Ambassador Pasi Patokallio, the Special Representative of the Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs.

In November 2009 Mr. Gounden was invited to address a meeting of the European Union (EU) Development Councillors based in South Africa where he had the opportunity to engage with the Councilors on their views and perceptions of the Continent and to answer or clarify perceptions which could change the way that they, and in the long run their governments, may view the environment on the Continent.

On 30 November 2009 ACCORD, in partnership with the Gandhi Development Trust, hosted a farewell dinner for the outgoing Indian Consul General in Durban, Mr. Harsh Vardhan Shringla. Mr. Shringla was a keen supporter of ACCORD’s work and visited ACCORD on many occasions bringing with him a variety of high profile guests.

The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited by the Royal Norwegian Government to be a respondent to Mr. Gahr Stores address during a seminar on "States in fragile environments: Common engagement for conflict resolution and development", that took place on 24 November 2009 at the University of Pretoria. The seminar was part of the official programme of the State Visit of Their Majesties The King and Queen of Norway, who were in attendance at the seminar. Mr. Gounden was the only respondent on the agenda for the seminar.

Norway is cooperating with South African partners on conflict resolution, reconstruction and the building of state capacity to counter the effects of fragility. This cooperation is based on the recognition that people living in fragile environments must build their own capacity. It also promotes the need for the international community to work together to assist the efforts of the affected people. The co-operation is not limited to the bilateral level. In Sudan, for example, Norway and South Africa are about to embark on a tripartite co-operation agreement with the government of Sudan to train that country's police service in the North, the South and in Darfur. Non-governmental organisations are also proactively included as development partners in various conflicts in the region. In the Norwegian funded Training for Peace programme, which has run at ACCORD since 1995, ACCORD has been actively engaged in the training of civilian experts and police in order to strengthen the capacity of African states to contribute to the civilian component of Peace Support Operations.

The seminar aimed to reflect on current challenges in the region and to identify ways forward as the Government of Norway strengthens its partnership to contribute to the building of more stable states, sustainable peace and human and economic development.

ACCORD's Executive Director was invited as a guest speaker to address a meeting of European Union (EU) Development Councilors based in South Africa, on 19 November 2009. The invitation provided an opportunity for the Executive Director to bring to the attention of the twenty four development councilors who attended the meeting the work that ACCORD undertakes on the Continent.

Mr. Gounden was able to engage with the Councilors on their views and perceptions of the Continent and to answer or clarify perceptions which could change the way that they, and in the long run their governments, may view the environment on the Continent.

Vasu Gounden, the Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD was invited to be a resource person at the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation’s (DIRCO’s) diplomatic Training, Research and Analysis Conference, hosted by DIRCO in Pretoria from 05-06 November 2009. The theme for the conference was “Closing the gap between Domestic and foreign Policies”. The conference presented an opportunity to exchange ideas and address emerging issues and scenarios around South Africa’s Domestic and Foreign Policy.

Mr. Gounden was asked to Chair the session that explored the issue of Soft vs Hard Power.

ACCORD has conducted trainings at the South African Foreign Service Training Institute since 1995, for both cadet and Heads of Mission trainings.

ACCORD's Executive Director was a resource person at the 'Exploratory Dialogue Forum for Northern Sudanese Civil Society Organisations' workshop hosted by ACCORD in Pretoria from 26-28 October 2009.

The workshop aimed to i) explore mechanisms of interaction and areas of synergy between civil society organisations from Northern Sudan and ACCORD; ii) to gain a better understanding of North Sudanese civil society’s perception on the situation in Sudan and their suggestions of what ACCORD could do to contribute towards a peace process; iii) to explore and understand the grassroots based dialogue processes that have been taking place in Northern Sudan, their impact and how ACCORD could contribute towards them; and iv) to enhance ACCORD’s understanding of issues, actors and facilitators of peacemaking interventions in the various regions of Sudan, with a view to informing ACCORD’s possible activities in Sudan and networking partners.

On 26 October 2009 ACCORD's Executive Director met with Aaron Williams, the newly appointed United States Peace Corps Director. Mr. Williams was in South Africa as part of a world-wide tour that saw him visit country directors of the Peace Corps in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Mr. Williams is a former USAID Mission Director who was based in South Africa in the early 1990’s. As one of ACCORD’s larger donors, ACCORD worked closely with Mr. Williams when he worked for USAID.

From Finland Mr. Gounden traveled directly to Addis Ababa to participate in the second day of the above seminar that took place from 15-16 October 2009.

Mr. Gounden was asked to Chair a session discussing the issue of “Building one Continental Approach in Mediation: Institutional Arrangements to support mediation of AU/REC’s and relations with partners”. The aim of the session was to discuss issues of collaboration and coordination between the AU and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) in mediation, and how to increase cooperation between them in order to build a more integrated approach to mediation.

Discussions included an assessment of the comparative advantages of the RECs and institutionalizing collaboration with them; collaboration with the United Nations and other potential partners in mediation; looking at the nexus between mediation and implementation of the outcome of mediation processes and proposing systems and structures; policies; funding arrangements; personnel; roster and training needs to support mediation.

In March 2009 ACCORD, in collaboration with the Government of Finland, successfully hosted a Seminar in Ethiopia, with African Union Officials, focusing on the issue of Mediation.

Vasu Gounden, the Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD was invited to speak at the above one day seminar hosted by the Government of Finland and the Finnish Forum for Mediation in Helsinki on 15 October 2009. The aim of the seminar was to make mediation better known as an instrument in international diplomacy, and to analyse its potential. The seminar included diplomats and scholars in political science and international relations.

Mr. Gounden was invited to participate in the session looking at Mediation Experiences and Lessons Learnt, focusing on the challenges and possibilities of international peace mediation.

On 07 October 2009 ACCORD's Executive Director, Vasu Gounden, met with Jeremy Astill-Brown, the former DIFID Southern Africa conflict advisor. Mr. Astill-Brown interviewed Mr. Gounden as part of a study that he was undertaking for DFID to help them identify if a development programme like DFID South Africa should have a peace and security dimension and if so why and how.

In late 2008 Vasu Gounden, the Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, was appointed onto the ICCO’s International Advisory Council. He was therefore invited to participate in an International Working Conference hosted by ICCO from 14 to 18 September 2009. The purpose of the conference was to finalize and conclude the process of dialogue of the key stakeholders regarding the preparation of ICCO’s strategic plan for 2011- 2015. The conference was find out whether there was common ground to make a shift to decentralised cooperation with Southern partners and how this transition process should be planned, taking into account that co-responsibility should be one of the key elements of the new organisation.

The Stakeholders present at the meeting included ICCO staff; representatives of partner organisations in developing countries; and representatives of partners in The Netherlands and of worldwide organisations.

The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited to be a resource person at an international high level conference arranged by the Heinrich Böll Stiftung (HBS) on the topic “Climate Change, Resources, Migration: Old and New Sources of Conflict in Africa.”. The conference was held in Cape Town on 03 and 04 August 2009.

The conference was arranged by HBS to take stock of the current state of Africa’s security architecture and to analyse some of the main current and future issues that might have a significant influence on security in Africa (namely climate change, resources and migration). The conference aimed at facilitating a debate between African and Non-African representatives drawn from politics; academia and civil society and also to sensitise the broader public on the above topic. For this reason the conference was divided into public sessions on 03 August 2009 followed by a non-public expert seminar on 04 August 2009. Mr. Gounden was asked to be one of the speakers in the concluding panel on 04 August 2009 focusing on the topic “Stony road: How can we make Africa’s security architecture fit for the new challenges?”.

In 1997 Vasu Gounden was appointed to the South African Government’s Future Challenges Commission to assess South Africa's technological needs in the future. Mr. Gounden has an active interest in future trends and has presented on this topic in many forums, both locally and internationally. He has also participated in a series of scenario workshops hosted by the Government of South African looking at possible scenario futures for South Africa in 2014 and 2019.

The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, accompanied by Hayden Allen (General Manager: Corporate Affairs, ACCORD) and Sunitha Singh (General Manager: Finance and Administration, ACCORD) traveled to New York and Washington between the 8th and 14th of July 2009. While in New York Mr. Gounden had a series of meetings with various United Nations (UN) departments as ACCORD works closely with many UN agencies such as the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (UNDPKO) on ACCORD’s Peacekeeping programme and the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) on land mediation in Burundi.

Mr. Gounden also met with Advocate Fink Haysom who is the Political Advisor to the UN Secretary General and a long time ACCORD associate and with Mr. Christopher Coleman who is the Head of the UN ‘s Mediation Support Unit with whom ACCORD is working with on the African Union’s Mediation Support project. A meeting was also held at the International Peace Institute (IPI) with Edward Luck, who is the Senior Vice President and Director of Studies and from the Africa Programme Department Adonia Ayebare who is the Acting Director of the Africa Programme and Mashood Issaka, who is the Senior Programme Officer within the department. A meeting then followed with the interns from throughout Africa who are currently undergoing the internship programme at IPI.

In New York and Washington Mr. Gounden also held discussions with representatives from the International Senior Lawyers Programme, which is based in the US and with whom ACCORD collaborates with on conducting trade negotiation trainings on the Continent.

In Washington Mr. Gounden had a series of meetings with USAID and Fiduciary Trust International related to the drawdown of the endowment funds which USAID awarded ACCORD in 1998. As part of the grant agreement the endowment is invested in the US stock market and is managed by Fiduciary Investment Management International. While the endowment was originally earmarked to be an evergreen endowment fund, at USAID’s request the endowment has now been converted into a drawdown endowment. The meetings that were held were to facilitate the necessary arrangements ahead of the drawdown of the funds. ACCORD Trustee Professor Wiseman Nkuhlu, who is the Chair of ACCORD’s EXCOM of the Board, which focuses on providing good governance oversight of the finances of the Institution and which meets twice a year in between ACCORD’s two annual Board meetings, led the discussions with Fiduciary Investment Management International.

The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited to attend the International Advisory Board Meeting for the Interchurch Organization for Development Cooperation (ICCO), which was held in Scheveningen, The Netherlands from the 21st to the 24th of June 2009. Mr. Gounden was appointed to the ICCO board in late 2008 after attending their regional meeting that was held in Madagascar and which aimed to investigate how to implement their new innovation process in the Southern Africa region.

While in The Netherlands Mr. Gounden had a series of meetings with various representatives from the Africa desks at the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In 2007 Mr. Gounden was invited by the Dutch United Nations Student Association Utrecht (DUNSA-Utrecht) to be the Keynote speaker at their conference on international conflicts entitled “A Struggle for Peace”. He was also invited by the National Committee for International Cooperation and Sustainable Development (NCDO) to be a resource person at the Dutch Africa Day, presenting the keynote address in the workshop on “African Solutions to African Conflicts”. In 2008 Mr. Gounden was one of two speakers from the South invited to be a resource person at the “Ontwikkeling is Verandering” (Development is Change): Dialogue about the Future Conference hosted by the Royal Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). This meeting was part of the interactive dialogue process started by the MFA with Dutch civil society organisations about the future of the Dutch co-financing system.

The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited to be a resource person at the Oslo Forum, which is co-hosted by the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue. The retreat was held from the 16th to the 18th of June 2009 in Oslo, Norway. The Oslo Forum invites senior mediators and peace process actors to reflect critically on current mediation practices and to explore innovative approaches to address the changing environment in which mediators are operating.

The retreat follows an informal format. Mr. Gounden was asked to prepare the briefing paper for the retreat focusing on the topic “The role and impact of regional mediators”. Mr. Gounden also led a focus session on the same topic.

In addition to the annual gathering in Oslo, the process also includes regional retreats that focus on specific issues in mediating conflict in Asia and Africa, among others. Mr. Gounden attended the African Mediators Retreat which was held in Zanzibar in March 2009.

The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, attended the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa that was held in Cape Town from 10-12 June 2009. WEF brings together the key individuals from all levels of society and offers important discussion, information sharing and networking opportunities. The theme for this year’s summit was “Implications of the Global Economic Crisis for Africa”.

In 2000 and 2003 ACCORD’s Africa Peace Award ceremony formed the gala evening for WEF’s Africa Economic Summits. In 2000 Mr. Gounden was elected by WEF as one of their Global Leaders for Tomorrow (GLT). Mr. Gounden has also served as a resource person at a number of WEF Africa Economic Summits.

The founder and Executive director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was invited to be a resource person at a conference entitled “Making the difference: Strengthening capacities to respond to crises and security threats” which was hosted by the European Union (EU) in Brussels on 03 and 04 June 2009. Every two years the EU brings together policy makers and practitioners in conflict prevention and crisis response from the international community to examine and learn from responses to crises and security threats.

There is a growing understanding over the last ten years that conflicts and other crises require comprehensive responses that address all relevant dimensions, be they civilian, social, economic, political or military. The main aim of the meeting this year was to look at what works best and “what makes the difference” , with a view to identifying effective approaches to the strengthening of crisis response capacities.

The format for the conference was plenary sessions along with parallel breakaway working sessions. Mr. Gounden was a panel discussant in the session focusing on Mainstreaming mediation in EU peace building, which aimed to explore the concept of mediation as part of the external relations tool box of the EU in the framework of its crisis response and peace building activities; reflecting on past and current EU mediation efforts and placing them within the wider international context with a view to identifying best practices; looking at possible ways of strengthening the EU’s mediation capacity and exploring the range of potential mediation actors, cooperation between the actors and opportunities for strengthening mediation support activities.

In March 2009 ACCORD hosted a conference in Ethiopia entitled “Mediating Peace in Africa: Securing Conflict Prevention” which was funded by the Government of Finland.

The Founder and Executive Director of ACCORD, Vasu Gounden, was recently invited to participate in the 2009 African Mediators Retreat, which was held in Zanzibar from 24-26 March 2009. The retreat was co-hosted by the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD Centre) and the Mwalimu Nyerere foundation.

The retreat offers an opportunity for senior mediators, high level decision makers and other key peace process actors working in Africa to share their experiences, identify challenges and reflect on their own and other’s practice in a discreet setting and informal atmosphere.

The African Mediator’s Retreat is part of the Oslo Forum, a series of pre-eminent, annual gatherings of conflict mediators that is regularly hosted by the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the HD Centre.

Vasu Gounden has been involved in mediation work both in South Africa and on the Continent, including Somalia, working with former President Nelson Mandela in facilitating the role of civil society in the peace process in Burundi and serving as an advisor on strategy to former President Masire on the InterCongolese Dialogue Peace Process. Mr. Gounden also worked with preparing rebel groups for the negotiation process in Burundi, facilitated by the South African Government. In September 2005 Mr. Gounden was the first member of an African NGO in the history of the United Nations Security Council to address the Council.